How to open in Uzbekistan without losing your entire budget

Two years ago, Alena Vladimirskaya opened TalentLab in Uzbekistan. She shared her experience and explained why some companies from the CIS countries find it difficult to adapt to Uzbekistan and what they should pay attention to when doing business there.

Uzbekistan, with its growing economy and large market, attracts Russian companies, but starting up here is not easy.

«Hop» doesn't mean "yes"

When Russians first come to Uzbekistan, do business or open offices, they are amazed by the hospitality of the locals. They constantly hear "hop" (yes) — agreement to your proposals. However, after this, problems often arise: partners stop responding to letters and do not comply with agreements.

This does not mean that they are bad, — It's just a local thing. In Uzbek culture, “hop” does not always mean “yes,” but rather “thanks for the information.” This is important to understand.

People — the most important reason

There are few international companies in Uzbekistan, and they have been operating relatively recently. Local specialists, although highly qualified, have different work standards due to the level of economic development of the country.

Uzbek personnel, who are considered the best specialists here in Russia, will occupy ordinary positions. Training such employees requires a lot of time and effort, since they often do not understand the need for training.

Working only with expats is also not always effective, since the country’s youth only know Uzbek and English. And the mentality is completely different, not similar to the Russian one.

High cost of personnel

Low salaries in Uzbekistan — myth. They have long been equal to the level of salaries in provincial Russian cities and often exceed 300-400 US dollars. Managers earn from 1.5 to 2.5 thousand US dollars, and in some cases up to 5-6 thousand US dollars. Many people get “gray” ones. salaries and income.

Clanity

In Uzbekistan, personal life is closely intertwined with work life, which creates difficulties in distinguishing work and personal relationships and responsibility for KPIs. It is customary here that people who get a job with good conditions bring their relatives and friends to the company, without paying attention to their professional qualities. This negatively affects the quality of task completion and business processes. And refusing a job can cause strong dissatisfaction.

No data

In Uzbekistan, automation is just beginning to develop, which leads to problems with the transfer of information when employees are fired. Many agreements are concluded verbally, so when an employee leaves they are lost, which creates difficulties for the company.

TalentLab encountered a situation where a local recruiter was leaving. He knew that it was necessary to maintain CRM, otherwise there would be fines. And he led her. But the company discovered that the data in the CRM was entered uninformatively: for example, “Abdurakhman — ok, Guzal — bad" — which did not help in any way in assessing the information. Therefore, it is important to implement a simple CRM and monitor its completion constantly, and not just during the employee’s probationary period.

Companies that should open in Uzbekistan

The economy of Uzbekistan is developing rapidly and the demand for many services is huge. TalentLab recommends opening companies in logistics, transport, EdTech, HoReCa, medicine, automation and marketing.

For those Russian companies who want to open in Uzbekistan, a few starting recommendations will be useful.

1. When opening a branch, it is important to have both expats and locals on staff. Expats know how to work with modern technology and grow a business quickly. Locals perfectly understand the mentality, language and characteristics of the country. And most importantly — KPIs for expats should include training for local employees so that operational management can be transferred to them in a year or two.
2. Try to open the “white” one. business. First of all, it's correct. You have arrived in another country and are obliged to respect its laws. Secondly, it makes you attractive to top talent. In Uzbekistan there is the same hunger for good specialists as in Russia. The best specialists are not ready to go to a company unknown in this market. Your only trump card — "white" salary
3. Separate the concepts of “hop” and “hop” and “yes.”When you hear “hop,” very politely record what you actually agreed on. And make sure that you understand all agreements equally.
4. Find local guides, make friends with local experts, market experts. This is absolutely necessary here — otherwise you won’t get good contracts.

Uzbekistan is structured differently from most other CIS countries. Those business models that have launched well in Kazakhstan or Kyrgyzstan will most likely not launch here (for example, Uzbekistan is not part of the EAEU, and these are other customs duties). So set aside time to check the model, custom development, and any errors that will occur.